ASHEVILLE — If Brownie Newman wants Buncombe County to consider proposed pay cuts, he'll have to find at least two fellow commissioners to join the cause.

It may not be an easy feat. The seven-person county Board of Commissioners, forced to confront inflated salaries and allegations of fraud under their watch, are now looking for ways to regain public trust and commit to transparency — but that doesn't mean they agree on how to get there.

"I think that everyone recognizes there's a need to make changes, but there are differences," Newman told the Citizen-Times this week.

Newman on Oct. 11 released a memo, calling for commissioners to cut their own pay to fall in line with that of similarly sized counties. The Democratic chairman also called for reducing overall compensation for senior management "through restructuring, adjustments to salary, attrition or other approaches."

Last week, however, commissioners voted to eliminate the board chairman's ability to place items on meeting agendas. The move left one remaining option: At least three commissioners must come together to bring proposals forward for consideration.

That's what three commissioners did at the last meeting, using a bipartisan approach. Republican Joe Belcher and Democrats Ellen Frost and Al Whitesides sought changing the chairman's authority.

Newman, chairman for the past year, cast the lone dissenting vote. It was the board's first meeting since he and Commissioner Mike Fryar briefly argued over the proposal in board chambers before another meeting in mid-October.

Newman said he didn't receive calls from colleagues before the proposal was placed on the agenda.

"At the end of the day, I don't expect this to change the outcome of any major issues in the county, because it takes four votes to approve any county policy or initiative," he said. "But all this allowed the chair to do was put things on the agenda for a public discussion and a potential public vote."

Newman's now contacting other commissioners. At least one, Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, has expressed support for the proposal.

Others, however, say they want to see a salary study first. The county has issued a request for proposals to pick a firm to conduct the study.

"I don't know if there's three commissioners that would support putting this back on the agenda or no," Newman said. "I certainly hope so. I think it's a very reasonable step for us to take, and I remain really supportive of it."

If approved, the pay cuts would join the onslaught of policy changes meant to correct actions taken by Wanda Greene, the former county manager who's now the subject of a federal criminal investigation.

Previously sealed documents show that county officials notified investigators of "inappropriate financial transactions" that included gift card purchases and online home decor orders, the Citizen-Times reported this week.

A search warrant application said nearly $42,000 in taxpayer money was spent in three years on gift cards to Sam's Club, Office Depot and Target. About $900 was spent on home decor from Wayfair, including furniture and decorative wall hangings.

The county also released salary information last month that revealed a total of more than $1.4 million was paid to at least 10 employees under a so-called retention incentive program. The employees, already making six figures, also received bonuses and other pay, including a 1.5 percent pay raise last year that was intended to go to the county's lowest-paid employees.

In response, commissioners over the past three months have strengthened the county's whistleblower and nepotism policies, eliminated the retention incentives and clamped down on other authorities previously held by Greene.

Newman said many residents think too many county employees are working "for personal gain rather than the public interests." That's often dismissed as hyperbole in "normal times," he said.

"Senior management of Buncombe County has done things so that they are significantly overpaid compared to others in the position around the state," he said. "That's the main problem. I think we are trying to fix that, but I think that would be hypocritical to call on others to change their compensation when there's also data showing the county commission is paid more than others doing the same kind of work. I disagree with that."

As chairman, Newman makes $37,650 annually. Other commissioners make at least $28,916, with Frost receiving additional pay for serving as vice chairwoman.

That's in line with or even more than the state's largest metropolitan counties, according to data compiled by the UNC School of Government. Mecklenburg County's board chairman made $33,388 and its commissioners made $26,710 during the 2016-17 year; Wake County's chairman made $26,097 and its commissioners made $22,252.

Frost said Wednesday that her support of changing the agenda-setting procedure "has nothing to do with the past or present chairman."

"But we saw what happened with unfettered power," she said. "And not to take away from anybody, but Wanda could have something she wanted to do. She knew that if the chair put it on the agenda, it had a greater degree of passing. So she would use that.

"And right now, we have a good chairman and a good county manager. But who's to say it's always going to be that way?"

Still, Frost said, commissioners saw more internal discord before Greene's retirement. She said Greene was known to pit commissioners against each other and used individual meetings to either thwart or move forward projects.

Frost even blamed Greene for a period of time in which she and fellow Commissioner Fryar did not speak to each other.

"Wanda would do something extensively for one person but she would always make sure she benefited," Frost said.

Fryar, who's called Newman's proposal "grandstanding," said commissioners risk jumping in front of new county manager Mandy Stone's efforts to lead the county.

But he, too, recognizes that commissioners will differ as the county attempts to move past Greene's tenure.

"Are you going to agree all the time? Absolutely not," Fryar said. "But am I going to get mad? No. I've learned in this chamber that everyone in there has their own decisions to make, and we have to make them in a way that we feel is comfortable."

Newman's proposal

Outlined in a two-page memo, board Chairman Brownie Newman has called for pay changes following the release of salary information that showed high incentives and hefty bonuses for some of the county's highest-paid employees. Here's what Newman has proposed:

A 12-month freeze on cost-of-living adjustments for department heads and senior leadership.

A pay cut plan for senior management team to recover salary bonuses "through restructuring, adjustments to salary, attrition or other approaches."